Released By: AFM Records
Release Date: September 27th, 2024
Genre: Power Metal
Links: https://www.serious-black.com/
Line Up:
Nikola Mijic – Vocals
Dominik Sebastian – Guitars
Bob Katsionis – Guitars
Mario Lochert – Bass
Ramy Ali – Drums
Tracklist:
1. Open Your Eyes
2. We Are the Storm
3. Silent Angel
4. Take Your Life
5. Shields of Glory
6. When I’m Gone
7. United
8. Rise of Akhenaton
9. Virtual Reality
10. I Will Remember (Toto cover)
11. Metalized
I’ve had a fairly mixed relationship with international power metal band Serious Black over the years, generally enjoying their music but feeling they have plenty of potential to be better. Their debut, As Daylight Breaks, was a very solid album, presenting a nice mix of classic power metal and melodic metal. However, I found myself a bit disappointed by the following three albums—enjoying them in bursts but not being overly impressed on the whole. It wasn’t until a change in vocalists and the resulting fifth full-length album, Vengeance is Mine, that the band finally started to impress me once again. It’s hard to explain why that album clicked for me more than their past albums; stylistically, it wasn’t too different, but somehow it felt fresh to me, and the songwriting hit me in ways most of their other work didn’t. Now, with their upcoming sixth full-length album, Rise of Akhenaton, I was hoping the band could deliver for the second album in a row, and thankfully, they did not disappoint!
Not much has changed between albums, with the same lineup back for this one, along with Bob Katsionis serving as a second guitarist. There’s no keyboardist listed, but Katsionis filled in for that position on the last album, and I’m guessing he most likely did so again for this album, because there’s certainly a lot of keys here, and they sound great, as usual. At this point, Serious Black fans should know exactly what to expect, as aside from the slightly darker, more aggressive Suite 226, all of their albums have followed roughly the same formula, offering up a nice blend of melodic, up-tempo power metal, some energetic, mid-paced melodic metal, some ballads, and even the occasional arena rock-flavored track. Rise of Akhenaton delivers all of that, as usual, and if anything, I’d say it’s one of their most varied albums to date, with a little bit of something for fans of all their different styles. Power metal fans are sure to love the opening track, “Open Your Eyes,” and the title track, while melodic metal fans should enjoy the single “Silent Angel” and “Take Your Life.” Arena rock fans should love “United,” and those looking for a nice ballad should be satisfied with “When I’m Gone.” Songwriting is quite varied, but the overall focus of this album seems to be on no-nonsense, no filler—just plain old catchy melodic power metal. There are no longer tracks, no intros or interludes, and very little time wasted whatsoever. The album clocks in at a lean and mean 44 minutes, and it’s consistently excellent the whole way through.
I found the last album relied heavily on guitar work, and while that is somewhat the case again on this album, I do notice a bit more keys this time around, with some tracks using them as the main driving force, especially the lighter, more melodic metal-based tracks. The keys here are excellent—very energetic and doing a great job of adding flavor to the music. Guitar work is also excellent, with some heavy riffs on a few tracks, as well as some nice solos and plenty of great melodic lead guitar work, as always. It’s a very light and melodic album, as usual, with bursts of heaviness on occasion, but overall, it’s definitely on the softer side of power metal, which shouldn’t be a surprise to fans of the band. It heavily relies on strong melodies and huge, catchy choruses, and just like on the previous album, the band has succeeded big time in that area. Performances are strong across the board, with Dominick Sebastian and Katsionis both in top form on their guitars, while Mario Lochert and Rami Ali do a great job with the rhythm section, as always, and vocalist Nikola Miji? sounds fantastic, fitting in very comfortably on his second album and often stealing the show, once again. Production is also strong across the board.
As I mentioned before, Rise of Akhenaton wastes no time at all with intros, instead jumping straight into the explosive opener, “Open Your Eyes,” which is one of my favorites on the album. It opens with some light keys before the drums kick in, and the track speeds up for a bit before once again slowing down during the opening verse. It takes a while for the guitars to kick in, but once they do, the track starts getting heavier, and the chorus is fast, fun, and super catchy, with fantastic vocal melodies and a strong lead vocal performance. The track nicely alternates between fast and slow passages, but overall, it is one of the speedier tracks on the album, with that chorus in particular being a big highlight, along with a nice keyboard solo towards the end. Next is “We Are the Storm,” a song that offers up a nice mix of melodic lead guitar work, bouncy keys, and some symphonic arrangements, helping to make it more of a symphonic power metal track. It moves at a fairly moderate pace throughout, slowing down slightly during the verses but maintaining an upbeat feel throughout, with the chorus and main riff in particular being quite fun and energetic.
The first lighter track is “Silent Angel,” which is more of a melodic metal track, moving at a fairly subdued pace, with a nice main riff and some light keys leading the way, along with a steady drum beat. It has a classic heavy metal/hard rock feel during the verses, with just a slight edge to it, while the chorus goes all in with the keys and catchy vocal melodies, bringing the track into full-on melodic metal territory. It’s a very strong chorus, with fantastic vocal melodies and strong lyrics, and the melodic guitar solo towards the end is also very good. Another lighter, hard rock-infused track is “Take Your Life,” the first of a couple of tracks that have a bit of an arena rock feel to them. It moves at a fairly slow pace, with some heavy but subdued guitar work mixed with light electronic keys during the verses, while the guitars take a backseat for more intense keys and drums during the chorus, which is very fun, catchy, and even features a sample of a crowd cheering towards the end, further cementing the arena rock feel. The final run through the chorus is absolutely fantastic and one of my favorite parts of the album.
Things get a bit heavier once again with “Shields of Glory,” which essentially feels like a classic heavy metal track with a bit of extra keys and slight symphonic elements thrown in over top. It has some light, melodic keys at points, but it also has by far the heaviest, chunkiest riffs on the album, especially during the verses, where the heaviness does not let up for a second, while the chorus is more melodic but still quite intense, especially towards the end of the second run through, where the chunky guitars fully kick in, leading into a nice melodic guitar solo. The first of two ballads on the album is “When I’m Gone,” a light, piano-driven ballad with some light electronic effects in the background for extra flavor. Mijic does a fantastic job as always, and the verses are very strong, but while the chorus has an epic feel to it and strong, emotional vocals, I find the lyrics a bit too repetitive to fully get into, and it’s probably my least favorite ballad between this album and Vengeance is Mine. It’s still a good track overall, though, and the guitar solo towards the end is excellent—I just wish I liked that chorus a bit more.
One track where I do love the chorus is “United,” the most arena rock-influenced track on the album. Right from the beginning, fans are given a brief taste of the chorus before some very retro-sounding keys take over, along with some nice melodic guitars, leading into a slow but very fun opening verse. The track is very light and moves at a relaxed pace throughout, with a nice mix of light guitars and catchy, very old-school sounding keys. The chorus is insanely fun and catchy—easily my favorite on the album, with the final run-through in particular being incredible, and the whole track has a very strong arena rock feel to it. Once again, things get heavier with the title track, one of the most intense, power metal-focused tracks on the album. It has a very heavy, slightly sinister main riff with a bit of a Middle Eastern flavor to it, which is maintained in the keys and melodies throughout the track. Verses alternate between fast, heavy sections and slow, melodic sections, while the chorus is soft but very tense and atmospheric, with some excellent vocal melodies. The guitar solo towards the end is also quite heavy and is probably the most technically impressive solo on the album.
Power metal fans are treated to another instant winner with “Virtual Reality,” a slightly more melodic track than the previous one, but still fairly heavy and with plenty of nice melodic guitar work, along with some bouncy, energetic keys. It moves at a fast pace throughout, with the chorus in particular going full speed ahead and having some fantastic vocal melodies, while the verses have an extra edge to them, thanks to the guitars. The second ballad is a cover of the Toto classic “I Will Remember,” largely a very faithful cover, with bouncy keys and drums leading the way, though the band does add some guitar work to give it a slight edge at points, and obviously, Mijic is much more intense and powerful with his vocals, which makes the chorus in particular stand out. It’s a very strong cover overall, and after listening to the two versions back-to-back, I’d easily give Serious Black the edge, though I might be a bit biased in favor of the slightly more metal approach. Closing out the album is “Metalized,” a high-energy, speedy power metal track with a nice mix of melodic guitar work and more fun, retro-sounding keys. The verses have a ton of grit and power to them, thanks to some heavy guitars and intense vocals, while the chorus is a bit light and more melodic, but still quite powerful and very catchy. It’s a very fun track overall and serves as a celebration of all things metal.
For the first time in a while, I was quite excited to hear new material from Serious Black after how good their previous album was, and thankfully, Rise of Akhenaton continues with what worked on that album and is every bit as fun and addictive. Fans of the band are sure to love this album, as it delivers the same kind of fun and catchy, vocal-driven power metal as always, with a nice mix of melodic metal and a bit of arena rock for good measure. New listeners looking for a nice power metal or melodic metal album with killer vocals and excellent songwriting would also be well advised to give this album a listen or two, as it’s one of the band’s best yet.
Ratings: 9/10
Written by: Travis Green
My Global Mind – Staff Writer
Travis Green is a Canadian based writer for My Global Mind, with a particular passion for power metal, as well as an interest metal in all its forms.
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